University of Guelph child care centre touts plant-based menu to reduce carbon footprint

The University of Guelph Child Care and Learning Centre (CCLC) has become the first in Ontario to switch to a fully plant-based menu. A commissioned report estimates that its new carbon footprint is nearly 65 per cent lower than when the menu included animal-based products. 

Now the director is encouraging other institutions to follow suit. 

The food sustainability report, prepared by UK-based start-up Foodsteps, indicates the CCLC’s plant-based menu saves 1,963 kilograms of carbon dioxide monthly by not serving meat, fish, dairy and eggs. It says this savings is the emission equivalent of driving 7,818 kilometres. 

Why it matters: Consumer food trends and environmental footprint claims related to agriculture impact the demand for agri-food products.

“Going plant-based started out as an efficiency exploration. Then it became more about safety and inclusion and now it’s shifted to sustainability,” says CCLC director Valerie Trew. “It has become one of the ways we care for children. We are caring for their long-term health and the planet.”

She says the transition to plant-based nutrition has been well received by current and prospective CCLC families and the university, noting the hospitality services department is also working to increase plant-based options on campus.

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Trew, who has been vegetarian for most of her life and went vegan when researching plant-based foods a few years ago, says the change in menu involved sourcing ingredients as locally as possible.

The children grow some of their own produce in a garden and are learning about the fruit and vegetable, maple syrup and honey producers from whom the CCLC buys.

But the new policy has disappointed many Ontario Agricultural College alumni and has raised concerns among some agricultural groups.

“It’s a real slam against animal agriculture and I’m very disappointed in the U of G for letting this agenda be pushed,” says Keith Wells, a grain and cattle farmer from Williamstown who holds a Bachelor of Science in Agriculture.

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In a discussion on Twitter, other alumni shared that the menu “vilifies animal agriculture” and feels “like they’re betraying our heritage.”

Many said they would support plant-based foods being served in rotation with animal-based products so children were fed a variety of agricultural products.

When asked about being inclusive to animal agriculture, Trew says “what we need are nutrients, not products, and we’ve been able to demonstrate that we have really superior nutrient density in our current menu.”

Despite the many food and environment experts affiliated with the U of G, no local researchers were involved in the sustainability analysis of the new menu and no Canadian research was referenced in the footprint data.

“I found it personally disappointing that they didn’t talk to anyone at Canada’s food university,” says Mike von Massow, associate professor in the department of food, agricultural and resource economics.

“We have a lot of highly qualified people here on campus who will argue for plant-based, against plant-based and for a balanced diet.”

The Foodsteps report highlights beef meatloaf, beef shepherd’s pie and beef burrito bake as the previous menu items with the highest carbon footprint, as much as 3.92 kilograms of carbon dioxide equivalent per serving.

“We are disappointed to hear that the CCLC has removed beef from its menu,” says Richard Horne, Beef Farmers of Ontario executive director. “Beef is one of the most nutrient-dense proteins and is considered a foundational food for young children.”

Beyond nutritional considerations, he says the sustainability report fails to acknowledge the ecological benefits that Canadian beef production provides.

While all food has a carbon footprint, Canadian beef has one of the lowest greenhouse gas footprints in the world and the industry has committed to reduce emissions from primary production by 33 per cent by 2030.

Von Massow notes the report is not transparent in terms of the data used to calculate the carbon footprint for each menu item, which makes it difficult to assess.

U of G research has shown that food waste is higher when food service businesses prepare fruits and vegetables compared to meat and dairy products. It is not clear to what extent the sustainability report takes this into consideration.

“There isn’t a standard way to measure the carbon footprint,” von Massow says. “Some people believe we’re dramatically overestimating the emissions from livestock and others think we’re dramatically underestimating them.”

The report likely reflects where Foodsteps and the CCLC stand on that continuum, he adds.

Trew shared her views on the Plant-Based Canada podcast by referring to livestock farms as “torture chambers” and describing milk and egg promotional campaigns as part of “the constant brain washing and indoctrination that we undergo from the time we’re born.”

“The fact is that all the good nutrients that are in animal products are also able to be acquired through a plant-based diet without negative health implications,” she said. “In my opinion, [recommending animal products] would be like injecting vitamins into a cigarette and telling us we should smoke to get our vitamins. It’s incredibly short-sighted. It’s incredibly cavalier with children’s long-term health.”

Before introduction of the plant-based menu, CCLC staff were preparing many different versions of meals due to dietary needs and food allergies. Some children had to sit separately from others and cross contamination was a risk.

Trew told Farmtario she worked with a public health dietitian to develop the new menu and had it analyzed by a practicum student in the department of family relations and applied nutrition.

She presented a webinar for the Canadian Nutrition Society in 2021 and was contacted by many child care centres and public health dietitians for more information.

Trew now conducts seminars to help other education centres implement plant-based menus and teaches a course as part of the UofG’s plant-based nutrition certificate program.